Thursday, January 29, 2009

LN Celebrates 25 years - Honoring Bob and Linda Buford

Last night Pam and I were privileged to participate in the 25th Anniversary of Leadership Network honoring Bob and Linda Buford. A Who’s Who list of business and spiritual leaders expressed appreciation for the influence of the Buford’s; among those were Mr. and Mrs. Ken Blanchard, Jim Collins, Mrs. Peter Drucker, Bill Hybels, Wayne Cordero, and Dr. Kenneth Cooper.

Since Bob founded Leadership Network, dedicating his financial resources to developing church leaders of vision and passion, America has changed. So has the world. In that substantively changed world, Leadership Network and Halftime are making a positive Kingdom influence.

Many of you have been blessed by Leadership Network or Halftime. If you are one of those persons, let me encourage you to send a “thank you” note to Bob and Linda Buford for their investment which has enriched your ministry. Following is a text of my own letter to these dear servants.

On the celebration of the 25th anniversary of God’s favor upon Leadership Network it is my privilege to say “thank you.” Your willingness to follow after God’s heart through the ministry of Leadership Network and Halftime has enriched a generation of disciples.

I am one who has been blessed by your visionary leadership and selfless contribution to the development of young leaders. In 2004, it was friends at Leadership Network who saw the potential in publishing the results of my research and practical exploration concerning a seminal concept referred to as the missional church. That book, Shaped by God’s Heart: the Passion and Practices of Missional Churches, has changed the direction of our life and ministry. Our ministry among churches today, Missional Church Center, became reality as result of Leadership Network’s confidence in an unpublished author.

Beyond my own personal experience, I count as friends literally hundreds of church leaders and Kingdom professionals for whom LN and Halftime have been catalytic gifts of God in their lives and ministries. Shared learning, excellent resources, and life liberating affirmations have been given to many in the Body of Christ as result of your faith and vision.

As you walk forward, it is with optimism that we await your musings for friends. Together you have become a book written on the lives of countless thousands to the Glory of God. Thank you for being an instrument in the Father’s hand through which He is writing the next chapters for the generations to come.

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About the Missional Church Center

The vision of Missional Church Center is to foster movements of missional churches that will reproduce congregations committed to equipping and empowering authentic disciples of Christ, whose lives will fill the earth with His Glory.
Missional Church Center helps congregations to effectively equip disciples to grow in intimacy with God and live in obedience to His missional purpose, and to develop low maintenance congregational structures that facilitate high level member involvement in Kingdom initiatives.
Dedicated to moving churches from survival to significance, Missional Church Center empowers congregations and individuals to rise above maintaining the status quo to becoming a reproducing community of authentic disciples, being equipped as missionaries sent by God, to live and proclaim His Kingdom in their world.
Visit us online at www.missional.org for more information.